Faith…in Action

In a recent article, Christine Wicker, who will publish a book about Franklin Delano Roosevelt (Smithsonian Press) in a few months, shared a preview her book about President Roosevelt. Christine was 2 years old when Roosevelt became President who served the next 12 years! “After contracting polo, he went through a great crisis of faith. But Roosevelt came to see his illness and disability as simply a test of his resolve to be of service in the way that God intended him to be. He found hope in his darkest days through faith, and when it came time to give hope to the country in its darkest days, he was ready with an abundance of faith. While he believed faith in God was essential to bringing Americans out of the Depression, he didn’t often talk to the country about faith in God. The faith he referenced publicly was faith in oneself, faith in democracy and sometimes even faith in him. But the vision he had for America, one that was measured by its effect on the poorest among us, came straight out of Scripture. He believed fervently in his role as a servant of God’s plan. It was that vision and that belief, formed by Scripture, that changed America forever.”

Since I was age 14, Roosevelt was the only president I had ever known. I look forward to Christine Wicker’s book when it is published.